Such a side channel blower comprises a blower motor with a motor shaft, at the end area of which a delivery wheel is carried. The delivery wheel covers an axially open delivery channel surrounding the motor shaft and the axis of rotation thereof in a ring-shaped manner. The air to be delivered can enter the delivery channel in a delivering medium inlet and can exit the delivery channel in a delivering medium outlet provided, in general, close to an interruptor area.
To change the heat output of a vehicle heater, it is necessary to correspondingly vary the quantity of the fuel to be burned and of the combustion air. The conveying output of the combustion air is adapted, in general, by varying the speed of rotation of the blower motor and thus also of the delivery wheel being driven by same for rotation. It is, in general, necessary, especially at heat output levels with high heat output, to operate the delivery wheel at high speeds of rotation of up to 10,000 revolutions per minute. Since both the power drain, i.e., for example, the electric power consumption of the blower motor, and the level of the noises being emitted increase superproportionally with increasing speed of rotation of the blower motor and hence of the delivery wheel, prior-art side channel blowers operate, especially when a vehicle heater is to be operated with a high heat output, not only comparatively uneconomically, but also with a comparatively high noise emission.